The California State Senate unanimously passed a bill Monday that would establish safety and performance standards for self-driving cars in California.

The bill, S. 1298, will now move to the state Assembly for consideration after passing 37-0 within the Senate. The bill was authored by state Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), an MIT graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering.

"Thousands of Californians tragically die in auto accidents each year," Padilla said in a statement. "The vast majority of these collisions are due to human error.

"Through the use of computers, sensors and other systems, an autonomous vehicle can analyze the driving environment more quickly and accurately and can operate the vehicle more safely," Padilla added. "Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly reduce traffic fatalities and injuries. I envision a future that includes self-driving cars. Establishing safety standards for these vehicles is an essential step in that process."

The bill itself doesn't define those features. Instead, they will be defined, in the future, by the Department of the California Highway Patrol.

The original version of the California bill goes so far as to define an autonomous vehicle as one that "uses computers, sensors, and other technology and devices that enable the vehicle to safely operate without the active control and continuous monitoring of a human operator."

Nevada, which already approved legislation as well as licensing procedures for self-driving cars, also known as autonomous vehicles, uses a different definition.
"'Autonomous vehicle' means a motor vehicle that uses artificial intelligence, sensors and global positioning system coordinates to drive itself without the active intervention of a human operator," the Nevada definition states. It does not include the "continuous monitoring" caveat, and Nevada officials have also said that the law would require a driver to be sober to get behind the wheel of a self-driving car.

As the California bill was originally written, it would appear that a person sitting behind a wheel in a self-driving car could essentially be asleep at the wheel. A spokesman for Sen. Padilla, however, noted that the bill was amended in mid-April to eliminate that concern. He also disagreed with the characterization that a driver could be "asleep at the wheel," stating that the characterization is "factually inaccurate".

"The bill would require that, until such time that an
autonomous vehicle meets the requirements established by the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for the
operation of autonomous vehicles without the presence of a licensed
driver, an autonomous vehicle may not be operated on public roads
unless a licensed driver is seated in the driver's seat of the
vehicle," the amended bill states.

"In order to legally drive a vehicle in California; it must be done so by an appropriately licensed driver," a CHP spokeswoman said at the time. "Whether the input from a driver into the driving of a vehicle is done manually or electronically through entered commands, the driver is still responsible for the safe operation of the vehicle and is also required to abide by all existing rules of the road. Additionally, the vehicle must comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards as well as all requirements of the California Vehicle Code."

The Padilla bill would also divide the current, gradual path of driver assistance technologies, such as adaptive cruise control and lane departure warnings, from "true" autonomous vehicles.

"A vehicle equipped with one or more crash avoidance systems,
including, but not limited to, electronic blind spot assistance,
automated emergency braking systems, park assist, adaptive cruise
control, lane keep assist, lane departure warning, traffic jam and
queuing assist, or other similar systems that enhance safety or
provide driver assistance, but are not capable, collectively or
singularly, of driving the vehicle without the active control and
continuous monitoring of a human operator, is not an autonomous
vehicle," the California state bill reads.

Editor's Note: This story has been corrected to note that an amendment to Sen. Padilla's bill would require that a licensed driver be seated in the driver's seat of the self-driving vehicle. It also includes comments from Sen. Padilla's press representative.

About the Author

Mark Hachman Mark joined ExtremeTech in 2001 as the news editor, after rival CMP/United Media decided at the time that online news did not make sense in the new millennium.
Mark stumbled into his career after discovering that writing the great American novel did not pay a monthly salary, and that his other possible career choice, physics, require... See Full Bio

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